11 Christian Movies About Sports That Will Inspire You to Live to Your Full Potential

My family has always been very involved in Sports. My brother played football for a Canadian university, and then played pro in Europe for a few years.

My children are all athletes, and two of my children are high-level completive athletes. So, we are always looking for inspirational sports movies to watch as a family.

Sometimes that means seeing a movie at home for family movie night, and sometimes that means seeing the movie on the big screen.

The best sports movies of all time are the stories of true events that inspired a nation.

When the story is also a story of faith, and the main character overcomes huge difficulties by leaning on their Christian faith, then it is a movie that I am not going to miss.

Here is a list of sports movies that will inspire you to reach for your best God-given potential.

 

Twelve

This is a great baseball movie for your family to watch. Kyle Cooke, a gifted baseball player, is uprooted from his suburban lifestyle when his father, Ted, is laid off and takes a low-level job in a new state.

As a Father Ted is devastated that he has to uproot his son. He hopes that Kyle will be able to do well with the new baseball team.

But this is quickly dashed when Kyle becomes the victim of bullying and nepotism. Ted signs Kyle up to play with a different baseball coach on an opposition team so that he can follow his dream of competing in the 12-year-old World Series.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime moment, you are only twelve once, and his father doesn’t want him to miss it.

Kyle uses the disappointment of being left off the all-star team for his hometown as fuel to become the finest 12-year-old player in the state, and perhaps across the world.

He demonstrates how perseverance and effort pay off. I love how this movie shows our children that perseverance and hard work pay off.

In the end, when he plays against his old team in the big game… the state final, he discovers a greatness he never even knew he had.

 

The Fight Within

If you are looking for Christian films your husband will like this is one to add to the list. My husband likes movies with fighting.

My daughters now are grown and have boyfriends that are also looking for a more violent film, than the ones me and my daughters usually pick out. The best films are the ones we can all watch together.

So here is one I found for the men in our lives. This is a story of a man named Logan. Young MMA fighter Logan Chandler aspires to move past his rough past and create a new life.

Logan wants his life to be guided by his faith and his love. Then a local MMA professional named Hayden Dressler forces him back into the ring.

"The Fight Within" is a faith-based movie about martial arts that does much more than other Christian sports movies.

This is a movie that makes us consider the impact our daily decisions have on other people.

We are making decisions that influence our beliefs, behaviors, and identities.

 

The Last Champion

There is nothing harder than facing friends and family after a failure, especially if it was a failure of character. Our children are going to have to do this at some point in their lives.

It is good to show them movies where the main character is in a bad situation because of the choices they made. But there is always a second chance.

This is the story of John Wright, a hometown hero and Olympian. He returns to his small town to prevent the foreclosure of his family home. He returns in humility after his bad choices shattered his hopes.

Unexpectedly, John takes over as the wrestling coach for his high school team, where he meets Michael, a gifted underdog with a complicated family.

John must develop into the team's needed leader, or else he runs the risk of losing himself to the terrifying ghosts of his past.

This film has a star cast, including Cole Hauser (You might know him from Yellowstone) and Hallie Tod who was the star of Lizzie McGuire.

You will also see Peter Onoriti from the hit show This is Us, and Randall Batinkoff who was in the movie X-Men: First Class.

 

I Will Soar

This is a movie that gave me goosebumps just from watching the trailer. I was so inspired by this movie and reminded that no matter where we come from, we can soar above our circumstances.

This is one of the Christian sports movies that tells a true story.

In this movie, we see the real-life accounts of a city, a community high school, and the coach who united them all to generate a successful football season and a record number of first-generation college students.

The documentary covers Head Coach T.J. Jackson's success in mentoring the many fatherless players, giving them the nurturing and strength, they need to graduate and achieve.

It is an emotional roller coaster with many heartwarming moments. We see how being part of a high school football team can actually save a life.

In the United States, there are many at-risk youth who need mentors to help them stay off the street.

In this movie, we see how these young men are able to take their aggression out during football games instead of on the streets.

 

Restoration

I was a tomboy growing up, and I wanted to play sports with the boys. Unfortunately, I grew up in a time when that was not allowed.

I love to have my girls watch films of strong women in athletics. I love sports films that show female strengths this is one of those movies. In this movie we see a young girl who is a wrestler, she needs a coach.

Into their small town comes a man named CK Erwin. He is a wrestling coach, he needs a family to help him find his faith. And this is where God goes to work.

But after accepting a position as a mechanic at a small Auto Restore business, he quickly becomes attached to the family of a tough high school wrestler Samantha "Sam" Collins, who requires a private coach for her final opportunity to compete in Finals this year.

 

Remember the Goal

Just today I was reminded of the verse “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 That is something we have to remind ourselves on a regular basis.

There are times when we are doing something and we know there is nothing wrong with what we are doing, but at the same time, we feel like we should not do it. I go back to this verse when I am questioning a choice.

Then I ask myself is what I am doing going to bring Glory to God? The very best Christian movies will have us asking ourselves some difficult questions. This movie asks that question.

This is the story of a young female coach who takes over the cross-country program at an all-girls Christian school and aims to lead these Christian athletes to their first-ever state championship.

As the runners begin their training, the top five girls are best friends and they each have a unique teen-related challenge. We see one of the girls who is dealing with a substance abuse problem.

Each of these stories develops as we learn more about the young coach's wisdom as she guides the girls along the path of life. It is hard for her to be a new coach of the girl's cross-country team.

This inspiring movie will remind you to live bravely where God has planted you.

 

Always a Winner

My father is a pastor and when I was in high school, he went through a phase where he was helping different churches that were about to close, so that meant we moved to a new town every year.

That happened during my teen years, so I went to five different high schools. Changing high schools isn’t any easier when you are moving into a new Christian school.

And that is what this movie is about. This movie is the third movie in a trilogy. You can go back and watch Remember the Goal and The Perfect Race.

Emily Hilton is in her last year of high school. And she moves to a new Christian school.

At the school, her life is impacted by her new coach and fellow teammates as she works to keep her state golf championship title.

 

Prayer Never Fails

Christian football movies are my favorite types of movies. The only thing that comes close, is political movies.

So, when I find a political movie in the genre of Christian football movies then I am hooked. The USA's supreme court decided, 6-3, on June 27, 2022, that a Washington State coach had the right to pray at the 50-yard line.

It was a constitutional right to be able to pray. There are many people who disagree with this decision. Many people in today's society oppose public Christian prayer.

Prayer has always been part of the history of college football, and now that we have taken prayer out of the field things have been going downhill.

American football and prayer belong together. The world we live in now is quite relevant to this story.

A high school football coach who prays for a player on his squad is depicted in this Christian movie. As a result, based on the school board's decision he is fired.

But always remember that prayer works! This is where the movie leaves the story of football games and enters the court system.

 

John Wooden: They Called Him Coach

I want my life to be such a bright light that after I have gone on to heaven people will remember me for being someone who lived her life for the glory of God.

That is the life of John Wooden. I love sports films that tell the life story of legends, and this is a biography of a Legendary Basketball Coach. Coaching a basketball team is more than coaching a sport, it is impacting lives.

John Wooden, a brilliant coach who was admired by everybody who knew him, gave an excellent example of what it means to live a Christian life.

This fascinating story is a terrific method to spread the message of honesty, faith in God, and caring for others.

 

Hometown Legend

I love the actress, Lacey Chabert. She is one of my favorite actresses. If you are a fan of Hallmark movies then you have seen her movies, because she is in a lot of them.

I am also a fan of the writer Jerry B. Jenkins. He is the author of the popular Left Behind Books series. A series I love.

This is a Christian movie about the small town of Athens. The once-dominant football team of the town hasn't had a winning season in twelve years since a tragedy forced the coach to resign, and the high school is ready to close.

But when the same great football coach comes back for one last season, he gives the Crusaders reason for optimism.

This is a heartwarming movie that will remind you of your first love, and inspire you to dream again.

 

Miracle at Manchester

My daughter has a friend in her high school class who has Cancer. My daughter has been friends with her since they were in the 2^nd grade.

She had cancer in the 2^nd grade and recovered. But then it came back again last year. Seeing a teenager on the verge of adulthood suddenly faced with death is extremely difficult.

This Christian film is based on a true story of a community's effort to plan a miracle for a teen undergoing treatment for terminal brain cancer.

This is a story of a young man facing death, and a community that wants to find a way to help save him. This movie shows a real-life story that will inspire you.